Jason Wingreen, voice of Boba Fett, dead at 95

Share This Post

Actor Jason Wingreen, who voiced Boba Fett in the original release of The Empire Strikes Back, died on Dec. 25, 2015. He was 95 years old.

Wingreen’s role as the bounty hunter who took down Han Solo was originally uncredited. Later, his voice was replaced by Temuera Morrison, who played Boba Fett’s father/clone, Jango Fett. It wasn’t until an interview with Star WarsMagazine that his appearance became known (and if some eagle-eyed fan can find a link to the interview, I would very much appreciate it).

Wingreen spent 10 minutes recording his lines, for which he was payed a flat fee. That became a source of ire for the actor. According to USA Today, Wingreen said,

"I have a little helmet that my son and daughter-in-law bought me on eBay and gave me as a birthday present, where if you press a little button my voice says, 'Put Captain Solo in the cargo hold.' That’s my voice, and I don’t get a single penny for that," said Wingreen. "So I have no love for George Lucas."

A working actor with a lengthy IMDb page, Wingreen made appearances on episodes of Twilight Zone, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Green Hornet, Star Trek, Night Gallery and the Starman TV series. He also had a role in the 1970 film The Dunwich Horror.

For a look at listen-to of Wingreen’s original voice work, check out this all-too-brief video: